Well, sure it is. And in some way or another, we're all constantly 'influencing' each other in some way, whether we realize it or not. It's just not as concentrated and organized as what we've been talking about here. No easily recognized and definable 'Pied Piper'.

For instance, to admittedly oversimplify, what we as 'commenters' write influences the other commenters who read it in a couple of ways. It may cause some of us to think about a particular subject differently. Or it may give us more conviction that our own view is correct. But it has some effect, no matter how subtle or overt.

When I was a kid, at some point I wanted to dress a certain way because I saw other kids dressing that way. When I was old enough to buy a car, I wanted a certain type of car because my friends had them. No one individual was 'modeling' a lifestyle to influence my choices. I was simply influenced by the 'life' I saw going on around me.

Times change. The digital age and the 'net have not only opened up people's access to a diversity of 'life' that never before was available, they've also been great 'concentrators', as evidenced by the evolution of the 'influencers' we've been talking about here. They strike me as a bunch of small, independent one-horse advertising agencies doing business on Madison Avenue, minus the 'Avenue'. Now it's the 'net.

Doesn't change my view of the effect that has on our society. Madison Avenue always promoted a lot of awfully 'shallow' stuff, and still does, all in the pursuit of a buck. Same business model for the individual influencer on the 'net. Those folks just don't have the same 'overhead'.

And the Piper plays on... :-)